Reconciliation

This is my sermon text from June 24, 2018. The main focus of my message was on 2Corinthians 5:17-6:13 (an expansion of the Lectionary reading,) but with reference to the Gospel lesson (Mark 4:35-41) and prayers from the Psalm, Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32. You can listen to the message from St. Mark here.

Please join me in prayer. Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; for God’s steadfast love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, those God redeemed from trouble & gathered in from the lands.[1] Amen.

Grace, peace and mercy to you, from God, our Creator, and Jesus Christ, God’s Son and our Redeemer.  AMEN.

One of the most fascinating books I have ever read is by Bishop Desmond Tutu titled No Future Without Forgiveness. This book details his time as the head of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The Reconciliation Commission was established after apartheid was overthrown as a way for South Africans to heal. People on both sides of the struggle, white and black, government and rebel, could testify, in public, before the Reconciliation Commission, and if they confessed what they had done, they could receive amnesty from criminal and civil cases. 

The goal of the Reconciliation Commission was to have the truth come out; to let loved ones know what happened to those who “were disappeared.”

In the book, Bishop Tutu recounts testimony of soldier and freedom fighter, police officer and criminal, all of whom detailed the violence they inflicted, in torturous detail, often in front of the family of the person they beat, abused and killed.

Forgiveness is one thing. Reconciliation is another. The root of the word we use in the Bible to forgive means “to let go.” To forgive is to let go of the hurt, the wound, the anger, the abuse. You let go of it; you no longer haul it around with you. To reconcile means to restore, to bring back to balance. To forgive, you no longer hold onto the hurt, but to reconcile, you explain how the hurt affected you until the one who hurt you understands the hurt. Often, the one who was hurt will also learn what was behind the hurting, why someone acted out that way.

Reconciliation brings the perpetrator back into the lives of the one or ones they hurt. Reconciliation sits the bully down with those who were bullied. Reconciliation brings the robber back to the scene of the crime. Reconciliation puts perpetrators and victims together. 

Reconciliation stinks.

Yet, reconciliation is what we are called to do. As part of the NEW CREATION, All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.[2]

Before you think about how hard it will be for you to even try to reconcile someone who has hurt you to yourself, join me in looking at verse 18 from 2Corinthians 4, All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ. 

Our first reconciliation is with God. Yes, God has forgiven us for our sins, but we have to be reconciled to God. We have to understand how our sins have hurt God. We have to learn how the things we have done and the things we have left undone have impacted God’s will. We must realize how our actions have impacted others.

This is the connection between being forgiven, yet being accountable. While God has already forgiven us for our sins, we still have to be reconciled, we have to be brought into balance, we have to restore balance by being aware of what our actions or inactions meant.

We have been given the ministry of reconciliation of the world by God. We are to reconcile the world to itself, to one another, and then to God. We are ambassadors for Christ, telling the world that while they are accountable for what they have done or left undone, God forgives them. But can we forgive ourselves, and can we forgive others?

You can’t be reconciled if, while accepting your forgiveness, you deny it to someone else. If you don’t want the law applied to you, you cannot want to have the law applied to someone else, simply because you disapprove of their actions.

Reconciliation is hard, hard work. Thank God that we have all eternity to get it taken care of.

But we don’t have that much time to be about the ministry of reconciliation here on Earth.

One of my seminary professors said that serving a multi-point parish, being the pastor to multiple churches, is like a parental relationship. Parents love their children, but relate and connect to each in a different way. Similarly, I connect with each of the three Covenant churches in different ways. Each does things I really like. Each does things that I don’t understand.

The relationship between churches can resemble that of siblings as well. You connect on some things; you clash on others. You each go your own way, and resist comparisons. Hopefully, at the end of the day, we remember that we are all children of God, and work to share God’s Good News and grace with all whom we meet.

But between, and within, each of the three Covenant Churches, we need to work on reconciliation. In the history, and current history, of the three churches, each has wounded the other. Members have transferred. Words have been spoken. Attitudes have been taken. Slights, real or perceived, have been made.

While we can forgive, or work to forgive, for the three churches to work together, we must work on reconciling. Please realize, you are now bound together. You have to work together. Because you have agreed together to call a pastor, you are bound together for at least the time I am here. And I am not planning on going anywhere.

But we must work together so we can do God’s work. If each church tries only on their own to do things, you use up a limited resource. If you are willing to work together, you have more talents and abilities to rely upon.

I know that you look around the sanctuary on Sunday and see that there are a lot more empty seats than there ones that are filled. You may wonder how much longer can we continue on.

I refer you to today’s Gospel lesson.

A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. They … said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" … He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?"[3] Have faith that God has a plan for our little group of churches to do great things.

 Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth not knowing how, or if, it would be accepted. They had broken ties with Paul and Paul’s ministry. Today’s lesson almost reads as a “please, take me back” letter.

And we don’t know if they did. But Paul has laid himself open, and vulnerable, hoping to be reconciled. We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians; our heart is wide open to you.[4] May we also speak frankly, with open hearts.

Please join me in prayer. We cried to the Lord in our trouble, and God brought us out from our distress; and we were glad because we had quiet, and God brought us to our desired haven. Let us thank the Lord for God’s steadfast love.[5] AMEN.

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[1] From Psalm 107:1-2

[2] 2Corinthians 4:18-20

[3] Mark 4:37-38, 40

[4] 2Corinthians 6:11

[5] from Psalm 107:28-31